Dig
by NonFiction
Summary: She was always there; ready to pick up his pieces after life shattered him. He would never tell her to her face, but he appreciated her more than anything else in his life. Just a Toph and Zuko moment. Set post war


This is a little oneshot I wrote when I was bored. Nothing more, nothing less. Set a few years after the war. I hope you like.

Also, I do not own the characters or anything like that blah blah blah.

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Zuko sat as his desk, rapping his fingers on the fine mahogany wood as he tried to focus on the overwhelming scrolls of parchment sprawled out haphazardly in front of him. But _something_ was sapping his attention.

Toph sat on the floor of his study chambers, digging at her toes with untold fascination. Zuko sat at his desk across the room watching her, instead of sifting through the documents before him, his face pressed in the unique expression of annoyance and captivation it seemed only Toph was able to draw from him.

It had been four years since he had taken the throne as Fire Lord. Four years since the war ended. Four years cooped up in the palace, which was, in reality, nothing more than a very elaborate and well-decorated cell. It had been four years that Toph had hung around that palace, and by extension, around him. He had offered her a place to stay after the war, knowing that she would probably rather die than return home. And much to his delight, she accepted. But since then, she had barely left the grounds aside from occasional outings with the Avatar. Four years of constant companionship had left them with an irreplaceable love/hate relationship. When they were close, it was almost sickeningly so. And when they were arguing…well, Zuko had learned to keep contractors on call to make repairs to the palace. They had watched each other grow up, and as much as it felt odd and illogical to say as Zuko watched her flick clobs of dirt off her toes, she was his best friend.

Maybe it was because she was always there next to him. Ready to be leaned on when he needed her. She was there at his father and sister's execution. She was there at his coronation as Fire Lord. She was there when Mai left him. She was there when Iroh passed away. She was _always_ there; ready to pick up his pieces after life shattered him. He would never tell her to her face, but he appreciated her more than anything else in his life. He'd do anything for her.

But at the moment, all he could think of doing was strangling the life out of her, "Will you cut that out?!" he spat.

Zuko's sudden outburst caused Toph to perk up, "What?" she asked as innocently as possible as she turned to face a direction that wasn't quite his.

Zuko frowned as she smiled sweetly at him. She does this on purpose, he thought to himself, "You're getting on my nerves. And that is disgusting, Toph. Can you not flick your foot-dirt all over my study?"

"Sparky!" Toph started, bringing her hand to her chest in an over dramatic display of feigned offense, "Are you insinuating that my beautiful little toesies are disgusting?" She leaned back, stretching one leg out and up into the air, wiggling her mud caked toes in emphasis.

Zuko felt a playful smile inexorably tug at the corners of his mouth as he watched her exaggerated antics, but he kept his face neutral and his voice steely, "Your beautiful toesies are annoying me. I'm trying to work."

"You're always trying to work, Sunshine." She countered, popping herself off the floor with a causal display of earthbending.

"I'm always _trying_ because you're always distracting me!" Zuko shot back as he watched her traipse up to his desk.

Toph ignored the bite in his voice as she placed a hand onto his desk, surprised to feel high stacks of parchment scattered messily about, "Are any of these important?"

"Yes," Zuko began. But before he could elucidate, Toph swept her arm across his desk, sending the scrolls falling to the ground even more disorganized than they had been.

"There," the little earthbender declared, smiling triumphantly, "Not so important now are they?" She could feel the heat radiate off of him as his temper flared.

"Five."

"Five what?" Toph asked ingratiatingly as she sat on the corner of his desk, idly bending the stone under his feet up and down in an attempt to get a rise out of him.

"Five seconds. You have a five second head start before I incinerate you."

Toph hopped of the desk and turned around to face him, trying to discern the playful from serious threats in his tone. She paused for a moment and reached out towards him, but when she heard the Fire Lord mutter 'four,' she turned around and tore off down the hallway laughing maniacally before he could give chase.

Zuko cringed as she nearly took the door to his study off its hinges in her escape. He stood, stretching for a moment before quietly whispering 'threetwoone' to himself and taking off after her.

His long strides caught up to her fast, as he tailed her he watched her long raven hair flow out behind her. And as he gained ground he began spewing tongues of flame at her, just hot and close enough to keep the pressure up. She began bending obstacles in into his path in retaliation, taking chucks of rock off the columns around them or raising the stone under his feet to trip him up.

As Zuko leapt over a rock that shot out of the eloquent stone floor, he couldn't help wonder how this must seem the to palace servants. What must it look like to see their Fire Lord scramble after a girl down the halls of the palace, slinging attacks and insults back and forth as they ran through. He smiled, thinking a little unorthodox activity would be good for the prim and proper atmosphere of the royal grounds as he pushed closer to Toph.

Toph was still laughing as Zuko reached out, trying to get a hold of her so he could singe the smirk off her face. But just as she was almost in his grasp, his foot caught on a piece of floor she had raised, sending him crashing to the floor. As he fell, his hand shot out and snagged her ankle, tripping her up as she too plummeted to the ground.

They laid there on the floor, Zuko's hand still wrapped securely around Toph's ankle, trying to catch their breath through fits of laughter. After his chest had calmed, Zuko pulled Toph down to him by her ankle, ignoring her cries of protest.

"Because that was so fun, I'm going to let you live," Zuko stated playfully, watching an amused expression spread over her features. He sat up, leaning his back against the wall and looking out into the garden in which their pursuit had ended them.

Toph got to her knees and sank into a low bow, "You honor me with your mercy, Fire Lord Princess," her voice low and sarcastic.

Zuko laughed as he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, "That doesn't even make sense."

He watched her shrug in response as she joined in against the wall, staring off blankly into space. Maybe it was the endorphins and adrenalin pumping through his blood. Maybe it was she sweet scent of roses that tickled his nose so seductively. But when he turned to look at his companion, it struck him that she was blossoming into a beautiful woman. Even though she was coated in dirt, dust, and grime the majority of the time, she was, simply put, gorgeous.

Zuko forced his gaze back out into the garden, wondering when this metamorphosis had occurred and how it had managed to elude his attention. His mind turned to the past four years. The time he spent with Toph was always the highlight of his existence. She was always there to keep him in check. When his ego flared, her sharp tongue and clever wit would put him in his place. He never had to seek her forgiveness. No matter what he did, she would wave it off and smile at him like nothing had happened. To her, he wasn't Fire Lord Zuko. He wasn't a crazed lunatic that chased her and her friends across the planet. His past didn't matter. What he was yesterday didn't matter. He was just Zuko.

It wasn't always good, however. She had away of digging at his deepest weaknesses and insecurities. She was harsh, and more often than not he wondered how she could be so cruel at times. But when it boiled over, without fail, he would discover that he was a better man for it. Her relentless digging and prying would purge him of his weaknesses, uncovering a better part of him the further she dug. Whether or not she knew her cruelty's greater purpose, he didn't know. But he appreciated it just the same. And in the end, they always made up. They always had each other to turn back to.

For four years they carried on like that. Neither ever growing tired of their love/hate rapport. But now, she was almost seventeen. And Zuko began to wonder why she was wasting away her youth with him in the same type of high society she hated so much. The Fire Lord sighed, and moved to get up, not wanting to take his thoughts in the dangerous direction they seemed intent on heading. But before he could rise, he felt Toph grab his wrist, holding him down.

"Where do you think you're going?" she asked accusingly.

"I still have a lot of work to do," he placed his hand over hers before he continued, "But thank you for the distraction, Toph. I needed it." He moved to rise again, but again Toph held him back.

"Oh, no. No. No. No," she muttered, shaking her head back and forth, "Are you forgetting what tomorrow is, Sparky?"

Zuko paused as she held on to him, wracking his brain for an answer. It wasn't her birthday. He _never_ forgot that. And there was nothing particularly urgent he could think of, so he decided to be honest, "Yes, I guess I am," he ventured hesitantly.

Toph smiled to herself, "It's you're birthday tomorrow, Zuko. Your twenty-first."

The Fire Lord pinched the bridge of his nose wondering how it had slipped his mind yet again before Toph continued, "The whole gang is arriving tonight," she laughed a little, "I can't believe you don't remember."

Zuko looked up to the red sky that hung over the garden. The sun was already getting ready to set, "I guess it's not that important," he said lazily waving it off.

"Well it's important to me," she retorted defiantly, "Now, what would you like me to give you?"

The firebender thought for a moment as Toph clung to him, wondering what he could possibly ask for. Not that he wanted to ask for anything in particular. But Toph would not take no for an answer. He watched as the sun steadily descended towards the horizon, enjoying the way she pressed herself into his side. He slipped his arm free from her grasp and slipped it around her shoulder.

"You know," he began slowly, concerned his words would come out more hackneyed than intended, "I honestly can't think of anything. Everything I could possibly ask for I have right here."

Toph shot him a quizzical expression as she felt his arm pull her closer. There was something in his voice. Something relaxed and at peace. Something she rarely heard from him. She rested her head on his shoulder, unable to suppress the smile that was trying to overtake her lips, "I couldn't agree more."

Zuko leaned over and pressed a chaste kiss into her temple, smiling as she sighed contentedly, before he turned his gaze back to the scarlet dusk sky.

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There you have it, short and hopefully sweet. If you're curious, this fic is very loosely inspired by the song of the same title by incubus. Look it up if you're interested. Oh and review. Do that too.


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